New Orleans might be the Big Easy, but there was nothing relaxed about this stretch of the Mississippi River. Where transportation and recreation shared the river in La Crosse, the lower river (below St. Louis, Mo.) was almost entirely dedicated to industry, with little to no recreation, especially around New…
Driving south from Memphis, the group arrived at Ergon Marine & Industrial Supply in Vicksburg, Miss., located on a big bend of the river, where Port Captain Lee Hogue talked about some of the issues users on the lower Mississippi River face, such as channel maintenance and strong currents and…
The group, now joined by Upper Mississippi Waterway Association leaders, Gary Williams, executive director, and Jeremy Putnam, president, arrived in Memphis. While this was mostly a travel day, the group was able to fit in a last minute tour of one of American Cruise Line’s (ACL) vessels that was docked…
After arriving in Minneapolis the night before, the Columbia-Snake River System group traveled to La Crosse, Wis., to attend a meeting of the Upper Mississippi Waterway Association (UMWA). At the UMWA meeting, the Pacific Northwest group spoke about the issues on the Columbia and Snake rivers, specifically the efforts to…
Growers and pesticide applicators should be aware of new language on pesticide labels that could restrict or limit pesticide use in certain areas where endangered or threatened species are found. The language will normally be found in the directions for use section of the label, indicating endangered species concerns and…
As a Whitman County native, I grew up spending countless hours helping around our family’s dryland wheat operation. From driving harvest truck, picking rye and rocks out of the field with my brother, and helping flag machinery when we moved from place to place, I was blessed to have had…
Nine, maybe 10 months ago, Eastern Washington farmers planted their winter wheat crop. Now they’ll find out if they’ll be able to recoup their investment. Winter wheat, which was planted the previous fall, ripens first, followed by spring wheat. Combines started hitting the fields in Benton and Franklin counties in…
More than 85% of Washington’s wheat is destined for overseas markets, such as Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines, where it will be made into noodles, cakes, and cookies. But how does the grain get from farmers’ fields to consumers’ plates half a world away? Companies, such as United Grain Corporation,…
Nitrogen is all around us. It is a colorless and odorless gas converted into a fertilizer for food production. Are nitrogen fertilizers helpful or harmful? How and when can it be applied to make the most impact in an ever-changing farming landscape? I turned to the insights of two seasoned…
At the end of June, a group of Columbia-Snake River System stakeholders returned from a tour down the Mississippi River impressed with the need for collaboration among all U.S. river systems and a reminder of how much of the nation’s commerce relies on these river highways. “While there are many…
